Many homeless youth go unseen or unheard. The most recent DESE data from the 2022-23 school years reports there were 1790 unaccompanied homeless students in MA.
In Massachusetts, you are considered a homeless youth if you are 24 years of age or younger, not in physical custody of a legal guardian and lack a fixed, regular and adequate nighttime residence. While Boston has been allocating funds for this often overlooked demographic, what more can be done to end youth homelessness?
Tori Bedford moderates a conversation with experts who work to address the situation, whether it’s through offering beds, educational programs or assistance with permanent living.
Elisabeth Jackson is the President and CEO of Bridge Over Troubled Waters, a nonprofit in Boston that serves homeless, runaway, and at-risk youth.
Dr. Alice Colegrove serves as the Director of Homeless Youth Services at the MA Executive Office of Health and Human Services. With over 25 years of dedicated experience in public health, housing, street outreach, and behavioral health, she is a leading voice in Massachusetts’s efforts to prevent and end youth homelessness.
Tori Bedford (she/her/hers) covers the Boston neighborhoods of Dorchester, Roxbury and Mattapan for the GBH News Dorchester Bureau. Feedback? Questions? Story ideas? Reach out to Tori at tori_bedford@wgbh.org.
